Page 404 - Reading Mercury

Miss Kent; Miss Walden and Miss Cordery acting as accompanists. An excellent
address was given by Mr. H. Stransom, of Reading, and other speakers were Messrs.
T.W. Hawkins and M. Blake. The innovation on the part of the C.E. Society was
considered a success, and will doubtless be repeated.

A NEW CLUB
There has been recently formed, and is now in good working order, a new club for
Wokingham, under the auspices of the Wokingham Athletic Football Club, to be
known as “The Athenaeum.” The object of the club, which is to be of a social and
literary character, is “to bring the members and friends (i.e. of the W.A.F.C.) together
in the evening to hold debates, concerts, boxing, and later on, perhaps, gymnastics.”
The old wool stores, No. 1, Rose-street, have been taken by the management, and
have been transformed into an effective suite of rooms for club purposes. There is a
reading room and table tennis court on the ground floor, while above is a long room
100 feet by 20 feet, available for meetings, also a billiard room, 35 feet by 20 feet. A
fine billiard table has been purchased, also a semi-grand piano. Several gentlemen of
the neighbourhood have subscribed liberally to start the club, and Mr. E. Ifould has
kindly consented to be the president.
The officers of the club have been selected as follows: Hon. treasurer, Mr. H.E.
Hall; hon. sec., Mr. A.G. Hall; hon. assistant secretary, Mr. E.J. Ifould; committee,
Messrs. S.J. Butler, L. Butler, E.J. Chase, A.C. Hughes, W.H. Howard, M. Grove,
E.H. Perkins and H. Watts. There are already 62 members.

1906

th
Sat 13 Jan
NEW COUNCIL SCHOOL AT WOKINGHAM.
On Monday afternoon the Wescott-road Council School, Wokingham, was opened
by Mrs. Murdoch in the presence of a large and representative company. The Mayor
(Mr. H.C. Mylne) presided, and there were also present: Mrs. Murdoch, Mr. H.G.
Willink, Mr. C.A. Ferard, Miss F.M. Wyld (members of the Education Committee),
Mr. T.E. Ellison, the Rev. H.M. and Mrs. Walter, Commander and Mrs. Gregorie, the
Rev. P.H. and Mrs. Ditchfield, the Rev. A.P. Carr, the Rev. E.E. and Mrs. Smith, The
Rev. J and Mrs. Stratton, Miss Cave, Mr. and Mrs. Denis de Vitre, Mr. and Mrs. W.
Palmer, Mr. and Mrs. W. Boshier, Mr. and Mrs. E. Barry, Mr. and Mrs. P. Sale, Mr.
and Mrs. H. Butler, Mr. and Mrs. J.J. Evans (managers of schools in Wokingham, Mr.
Murray-Spey, Mr. and Mrs. H. Goswell, Mr. and Mrs. A. Elliott, Mr. and Mrs.
Fawcett, Miss Baker, Mrs. Knight, Mr. and Mrs. Powell, Mr. W.O.F. Anderson
(Secretary to the Berkshire Education Committee), Mr. A. Shirley (assistant
secretary), and the following officials:-- Mr. T.O. Willson, Mr. Wallace Sergeant, Mr.
W. Challenor, Mr. H.F. Kearsey, Mr. E.L. Slade, Mr. E. Fisher (architect), Mr. W.
Watson (contractor), and the teachers of the district.
The Mayor said that at present there were 1,007 children attending school at
Wokingham; there were on the books 496 at Palmer School, 288 at St. Paul’s and
lately at the British 223. The Managers of the British School found themselves unable
to comply with the requirements of the Board of Education and the school had been
closed. The accommodation for the district served had therefore fallen short of what
was required, hence the erection by the County Council of that magnificent building.
When that school was opened there would be accommodation in Wokingham for

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